She’s a nuisance.
Can’t leave well enough alone and be glad she was spared.
Still not sure why I didn’t kill her when I had the chance. Something inside just wouldn’t allow it.
It’s a mistake I won’t make again.
I shift my attention to the girl standing before me. A vision of emerald-green eyes, shining dark hair, and a tattered silk gown, she clings to a slim wisp of hope that died long ago, the darkness has rendered her blind.
Unlike me. I got the night on my side.
I close the few steps between us, inhaling the wondrous perfume of her flesh, wondering how anything could smell so enticingly sweet, as she whispers a prayer to a boy she once loved, then levels her weapon at me.
Her aim is true, but her heart is reluctant, filled with regret.
A battle between the emotion and intellect, duty and longing. It’s no wonder she misses and the dart strikes the inexplicable small golden key that hangs from my neck.
Must be some sort of protective amulet left over from the days I was human.
I take it as proof that I’m here for a reason.
I loom over her, searching for the look of betrayal, outrage, and fear I saw on the last one, but find only a resigned acceptance instead. Even when I throw my head back and release a loud and thunderous roar, she continues to gaze at me with love in her heart.
I raise an arm high. Arc it straight toward her. But once again, my hand falters. Leaving me staring mutely into her beautiful face, overcome by something I can’t quite identify, when my body goes numb and I drop to my knees. Swaying helplessly for a handful of seconds, before my legs give out, my heart sputters, and I land hard on my side.
The girl drops beside me, casts a worried gaze at my face. The expression she wears telling me, this is it.
The beast is dying.
But strangely, he’s not dying alone.
The talons shrink.
A hail of black feathers spill to the ground.
As the girl brushes a tender hand to my forehead, and says, “It’s not this breath, but the one that follows that determines whether you live or die. Focus on the next one, Dace, and the one after that. Please, whatever you do, try to keep breathing.”
Dace?
It’s the same name the old woman called me. Must mean something to them.
The girl takes my hand in hers, places that small golden key in my palm, and folds my fingers around it until the truth comes roaring back and it all falls into place.
It’s more than just a talisman—it’s a key to the past. A passport that leads to a future I can no longer have. Unlocking a cache of memories that return in a rush—the girl has a name—an identity—a revered place in my life. The knowledge streaming through me as quick as a flash.
“Turns out, you were right,” she whispers, her eyes wide and glittering. “There’s only one force strong enough to overcome evil—love. Our love.”
She brings her lips to my cheek as I heave a breath so ragged I’m sure it’s my last. No time left to tell her how sorry I am to leave her with so many unrealized dreams. How lucky I was to know her—to love her—
for the short time I did.
FORTY-TWO
DAIRE
It’s a half prophecy.
A half victory.